Provident Living Fair this weekend

By Karlene Skretting
Westwind Weekly News
reporter.karlene@gmail.com

If you have questions about preparing food storage, planning for emergencies, writing a resume, planting a garden, the importance of a will, mortgage rates or first aid, information can be found under one roof this weekend.
On Saturday local residents are invited to attend the second annual Magrath Provident Living Fair between 11 a.m. and 5 p.m. at the Garth Veale Arena. The Magrath LDS Stake is hosting the family friendly event, that will share a wide range of free knowledge and ideas in a single place.
The idea behind the event is to help people become better rounded in all aspects of their lives, said Grant ZoBell, Magrath Provident Living Fair marketing coordinator.
“The LDS church is behind the event, but we are putting it on as a community wide event because what is being taught and shared can be applied to everyone,” stressed ZoBell. The Provident Living Fair is open to all citizens, despite faith, age or background. 
The event will showcase 30 different tables providing information on things like education, gardening, first aid, careers, food storage, health and wellness and finances.
In its inaugural year about 300 people attended the event, with organizers anticipating at least that many to walk through the doors this year. People are welcome to come and go as they see fit to listen to the different classes and visit the booths that they find most interesting.
“We encourage people (to attend) because they can be more successful learning these things and not be so reliant on someone else,” ZoBell shared, adding that the six aspects of provident living are fairly interconnected and help one to achieve a well rounded life style.
The event will emphasize four classroom style topics of discussions starting at 12 p.m. with a different topic commencing at one, two and three.
Anna McLaren will kick off the afternoon classes with an informative lecture on Saving Your Garden Seeds, during which time she will share some reasons for saving and sharing your seeds and provide some tips to best going about doing such.
McLaren is also anticipated to discuss the importance of preserving heirloom seeds.
Next up will be Grant ZoBell who will share tips to Keep Your Family Safe on the Internet. His lecture focuses on Internet filters and parental controls, avoiding phishing and Internet scams, and tips to approach your children and talk to them about Internet pornography.
“Everyone uses the Internet, but how many people know how to protect themselves?” questioned ZoBell.
“No matter what you do, they are going to be exposed to Internet pornography, so what do you do when they are exposed?”
At 2 p.m. Nolan Johnson will talk about Why You Need a Will during which time he will address the fact that everyone needs to have a proper estate plan in place to ensure the effective administration of their affairs after death including the distribution of assets and also guardianship issues in the event minor children are involved.
Johnson will also discuss Powers of Attorney and Personal Directives which are documents that come into effect while an individual is still alive but unable to take care of personal and financial affairs themselves.
Lastly Ryan Wolfe, a master mortgage professional of seven years, will wrap up the classes when he shares information on Living Within Your Means, Financial Planning. He will talk about the do’s and don’t of credit, debt management, mortgages and smart borrowing practices.
The event will wrap up with a potluck supper at 5 p.m. Those planning to eat are encouraged to bring a salad or a dessert to share. There will also be two cook offs for people to participate in, battling for the title of the “Dutch or Not” and “Best Buns.”
As opposed to propane or electricity, people are being challenged to use their primitive cooking skills and prepare a main course onsite, using a dutch oven, hibachi, open fire, or other homemade cooking device, explained ZoBell. Entrants are required to bring their own heat source and ingredients.
The other option is to bring already made buns to share for supper.
The community will vote on the cook off and bake off entries, for their favourites, with secret prizes to be awarded to the winners of both categories.
To register for either cook off challenge, or to address other questions about the event contact Grant ZoBell at grant@zobell.com or by calling 403-759-2423.